RunOutGroove
Addicted Member
I just got a pair of HiFiMan Sundara phones to replace a broken pair of Sennheiser HD600 phones that I can't seem to find parts that I need to fix. I bought a Schiit Vali mkI preamp to use with the old Sennheiser phones and from what I recall, when I tested it against the headphone output of the Marantz 2270 receiver that I've got, that it sounded better... and I was happy with my idea to try a separate headphone amp, particularly one that I managed to find for so cheap (I got the thing used on ebay for a good price). Now that I have the Sundara phones though, I decided to test them with the Vali as well as the Marantz 2270 headphone out and this time I was a bit surprised that I preferred the sound of the Marantz. There may have been a bit more top end extension with the Vali, but everything else was better with the Marantz, as it just had an overall fuller, more fleshed out sound, with more energy in the mids and bass.
Being that like a lot of us, I'm a bit obsessive about getting the best possible sound, I wonder about a headphone amp upgrade or whether I'm better off just sticking to the headphone out on the Marantz? Is there something about the Vali mkI that would mean that it would be a bit less of a good match for the Sundara and if that's the case would a mkII version of the same be a noticeable improvement... and then would that likely be better than the Marantz. If not, is there any headphone amp that's comparable in price which would likely be better than the Marantz for driving those Sundara phones?
There's also the matter that The Sundaras that I got, though used were open box and maybe don't have many hours of use on them and my Vali amp might not have to many hours on it either... so is it likely that over time, the Sundaras and the Vali might change in character enough to where they maybe sound better as a combo than running those phones through the Marantz?
Being that like a lot of us, I'm a bit obsessive about getting the best possible sound, I wonder about a headphone amp upgrade or whether I'm better off just sticking to the headphone out on the Marantz? Is there something about the Vali mkI that would mean that it would be a bit less of a good match for the Sundara and if that's the case would a mkII version of the same be a noticeable improvement... and then would that likely be better than the Marantz. If not, is there any headphone amp that's comparable in price which would likely be better than the Marantz for driving those Sundara phones?
There's also the matter that The Sundaras that I got, though used were open box and maybe don't have many hours of use on them and my Vali amp might not have to many hours on it either... so is it likely that over time, the Sundaras and the Vali might change in character enough to where they maybe sound better as a combo than running those phones through the Marantz?
